Containers of this type have recently become available primarily for “take-away” transporting coffee from gourmet coffee shops to a remote location such as an office for remote consumption. The conventional coffee cup limits the amount which can be carried and is inconvenient to carry a large amount of coffee for a large gathering such as at an office meeting.
However the container disclosed herein is not intended to be limited for use with coffee or other hot beverages and can be used for cold beverages or other liquids.
Six patents and applications of Andrews relating to this subject which are assigned to J&M Coffee Container Company have been located which are U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,715,992; 5,909,841; 6,053,401; 6,196,452; 6,290,124 and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 2002/0047040. This discloses a container of this type which has an inner flexible liner formed from a flat bag with an attached fitment bonded or welded to the bag, and an outer stiff cardboard shell which carries the liner. It has the spout for filling and pouring from the liner in the front wall of the shell. The handle is formed as a folded cardboard handle integral with the outer shell.
Additional prior art patents U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,233,817 (Casady); 4,815,631 (Eeg) and 3,363,807 (Powell) all show similar arrangements.
A further patent of International Dispensing Corporation which is U.S. Pat. No. 6,375,040 (Allanson) issued April 2002 relates to a container of this general type haing a complex handle arrangement which supports an inner liner bag and an outer shell.
Yet further patents in this area also relate to beverage dispensing containers for gourmet coffee and these are U.S. Pat. No. 6,062,431 (Geshay) assigned to BIB Pak Inc.; U.S. Pat. No. 6,209,781 (Sylvester) assigned to Liberty Carton; U.S. Pat. No. 4,781,314 (Schoonover) which relates to a blow molded container and U.S. Pat. No. 2,954,901 (Winstead) which discloses a rectangular molded liner with an integral neck which is inserted within a rectangular box having a handle on one face. However the neck is not intended for a screw cap and the inner liner is molded in two halves and connected together along a diagonal seam.